I recently saw some large prints (24" x 36" ) on canvas. The printer used was a Epson 7800. I currently shoot whith a 1Dmk2. at that size i'm at about 100ppi. Is that enough for a sharp 24"x 36" print on canvas? I currently print my small work at 240 ppi or above. Should I move up to a 1Ds mk2 for these large prints? Is it worth getting the 7800 with the Colorbust RIP or should I buy the basic model and get a different RIP? Would you consider a RIP necessary to get the most out a my new printer?

I have done some printing on a couple of different canvases using my 24" printer and dye inks. Yes, I'm a glutton for punishment but I do double coat them with sealant. The answer to your question differs with the texture of the canvas and the amount of detail in your subject. I have printed at 100ppi and I like the results with portraits, even when there is fine hair and eyelash detail. I don't, however, think the results would be as satisfying with highly detailed landscapes. Coarse weave canvas too is less demanding of fine image resolution than some of the finer examples. I use Qimage to resize my files and believe it has a lot to do with the quality of the results. I also think that the clean files I get from my 8.2Mb files also has an impact here, but I don't really want to get into brand arguements. Sufficient to say that noise free files print better, even on coarse surfaces, and especially when they are being subject to large scale interpolation. Regards,

A sharp capture is the key. I did prints for a client from a 3mp PS camera and on a 20X30 canvas they looked great. Resample your images to 240 or above dpi and then sharpen the final image. The canvas texture will help to eliminate any slight artifacts. Coating will also help a bit. The 1D delivers really clean images so as long as you know how to handle the file they should be great. What canvas are you printing on. I print 5d images on semi matte and gloss that are PERFECT at 24X36. If you want to print really detailed images, landscapes and the like, on glossy paper then the move to the 1DsMKII or 5d will help a bit, otherwise your camera will be best served by the best glass you can get.Julian